While speaking with Mojo, Tony Visconti recently addressed why T. Rex vocalist Marc Bolan and David Bowie had a power struggle. Visconti produced both Bowie and T. Rex, which means they shared the studio; hence, when the host questioned if the two acts ever ‘crossed the floor,’ Tony replied: “I was working with both of them at the same time, loving them both equally and giving my all to each of them.” Then came David’s first huge hit. Marc saw it as more of a rivalry.” The producer then went into detail about how Bowie and Bolan treated one other in light of their ‘rivalry:’ “David adored Marc and was always gracious to him. Marc might be a bit catty and snippy at times. But things improved when he became more prosperous and they were on more equal footing.
” T. Rex had their first significant commercial hit with ‘Ride A White Swan’ in 1970, followed by ‘Hot Love,’ as their eponymous ‘debut’ album generated two chart-topping hits. With 1969’s ‘Space Oddity,’ Bowie was already popular at the time of T. Rex’s entry into the mainstream rock scene, which set the stage for Bolan’s conflicted views about the singer. However, the pleasant ‘feud’ between Bolan and Bowie didn’t last long, as the T. Rex singer died in a vehicle accident in 1977, at the age of 29.
